Every Time You Lie
by lucindaaa
Summary: Just another Karen and Rob story, but will this one have a happy ending? Karen/Rob * UPDATE: 25 August, Chapter 5.
1. Chapter 1

**Hi. I would just like to say thank you for your kind comments about my mum and my writing, I really appreciate your support. But I'm trying to live my life as normal, and trying to get back to everything that I did before, I guess so I don't feel as if much has changed. So, I've decided to write a new story, this time I have a plot set before hand and I'm not going to rush it. I really hope you all like it. Thank you so much.**  
><em><strong>Lucie, xxx.<strong>_

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><p><strong>Disclaimer?:<strong>_ I unfortunately don't own any of these characters, they belong to the BBC._

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><p>It was just another rainy February morning in Rochdale. Karen awoke at around 7am in her blue painted bedroom. Next to her lay her boyfriend Rob, though she felt childish when saying he was her boyfriend, yet couldn't think of another word. 'Partner' just sounded too old. Rubbing the bits of mascara out her eyes, she turned on to her side to face her partnerboyfriend/Rob. She thought he looked beautiful sleeping, so innocent and calm, at peace with the world. She didn't expect him to be waking up any time soon, and felt harsh were she to force him to get up. Instead, she sat up and swung her legs over the side of the metal bed and slipped her feet into rabbit-shaped slippers. They were a joke-present from Rob at Christmas, and although she'd given him a sarcastic look when receiving them, she secretly adored them. Karen got up and walked to the door. She opened it as quietly as she could, and succeeded, but when she began to venture towards the bathroom the door slammed with a loud 'bang!' behind her. This awoke pretty much all the house: Rob, Jess, Harry and a month old baby. Several groans emitted from the mouths of the three old enough to talk, and their groans got even louder when baby Emilie started to wail.  
>"<strong>Jess!<strong>" Karen shouted, indicating for her to take care of her daughter. Karen had made it very clear that she was not to play mother here, and that Emilie was Jess' full responsibility. Surprisingly, Jess was doing a rather good job of being a mother, especially without a father there. Aiden had decided to live with his mother, therefore abandoning his child and its mother, just like Jess – and the rest of the family – had assumed to happen. They had protested at first, but upon realising there was no room in the house for him to stay, eventually let him have his own way. Rob missed him, of course he missed him, but he had Karen to sleep next to him every night which seemed to brighten everything up. Jess rushed out her room and into Bex's old room which had been converted into a nursery as Bex was now living in a flat in Manchester whilst at university. Karen stood on the landing and sighed, placing a hand on her forehead. She really didn't feel well. Suddenly, two arms wrapped around her waist and she was pulled backward slightly until she was leaning against the man who stood behind her. She flopped against his bare chest and let her head rest on his shoulder, closing her eyes as he rocked her slowly side to side.  
>"<strong>Kid's eh?<strong>" he murmured into her ear, before planting a kiss on top of her head. Karen turned in his arms and rested her hands on his torso, smiling at him. Rob's heart sped up a little; she did have a nice smile. He expected her to say something, but instead she placed a quick kiss on his cheek and walked down the stairs to get breakfast ready, in nothing but her nightie. Rob looked her up and down, smiled at himself (and her legs) and went back to bed.

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><p>"<strong>Harry! Rob! You're going to be late if you don't hurry!<strong>"  
>Karen fumbled with two bowls and spoons, and a cereal box, attempting to carry them to the table without dropping them. Jess was on maternity leave, but was downstairs before either of the boys were out of bed. She sat Emilie in her high chair and began feeding her what looked like dog vomit, which actually made Jess want to vomit. Nevertheless, she wanted to show her mum she was capable of being a good mother and continued spooning the food into her daughter's mouth.<br>"**You're up early!**" exclaimed Karen, shocked by the fact her daughter was up at little past 7:15am.  
>"<strong>Oh, haha, am I?<strong>" replied Jess, who had just dropped food down her pyjamas and was now scrubbing at it with a wet dishcloth.  
>"<strong>Yes.<strong>" Karen stated who then walked over to Jess to help with the shit on her top. A few seconds later, Rob swung round the door frame and over to the kettle in one swift movement and got himself a biscuit out the tin. He sat on the kitchen counter top, eating a chocolate digestive. "**Morning!**"  
>"<strong>I've got you some cereal out, you unhealthy bugger,<strong>" Karen joked, but did however take the biscuit out his hands and dropped it into the bin, "**And get off my counter!**"  
>Rob put his hands up, surrendering to her, and hopped off the counter. She smacked his arm. He just laughed, though Karen wasn't too impressed.<br>"**Morning darling**" he spoke through a laugh, and placed a kiss on her little pink lips. Karen threw her arms around his neck, deepening the kiss as his tongue slipped through her lips and over the top of hers, under hers and all over her mouth.  
>"<strong>Ewwwwww<strong>" Jess shouted at the couple, putting one hand over her eyes and the other over Emilie's, causing Karen to giggle into Rob's mouth and had to unwillingly break contact with lips, and instead rested her forehead against his.  
>"<strong>Stop it with yer kissing, it's disgusting<strong>"  
>"<strong>You're the one with a baby, you done a lot more than kissing<strong>" came a voice in the doorway causing everyone in the room to jump and turn round; they were unaware that Harry had joined them at some point. Karen giggled and gave Rob another kiss on his cheek, and brushed past Harry to go get changed.

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><p>Karen had come to love driving to work when Rob was in the car with her. He'd hold her hand whilst she was driving and they would sing along to old songs on Radio 2, they'd have amazing conversations and laugh like there was no tomorrow, all in the space of a 15 minutes drive to Waterloo Road. Karen had been reinstated as the head teacher at Waterloo Road after Richard had been fired for using Eleanor the way he did. Rob was also now a teacher and he taught English Literature along with Grantly, Tom and Eleanor. Karen was in the car, driving, holding hands with Rob like usual. She was a little earlier than usual, so decided to take a longer route through some countryside. Longer route meant more time with Rob, which meant happier Karen.<br>"**Turn around bright eyes!**" Karen sang at the top of her voice, and Rob joined in singing "**Every now and then I fall apart!**" though it was more shouting than singing, and rather out of tune. Karen had one hand on the wheel and the other in Rob's own. Both burst into "**Every now and then I fall apart!**" and sang the rest of the song in imperfect harmony. When the song finished, they fell into fits of laughter. Suddenly, a deer ran out into the icy road and Karen immediately stopped laughing and slammed her foot down.

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><p>"<strong>Has anyone seen Karen and Rob?<strong>" asked Chris to the gormless looking teachers drinking their coffee and arguing at morning break in the staffroom. It was 11am and neither had been in yet. Silence fell upon the staffroom, and a few people exchanged glances and shrugged at Chris. He sighed. "**Okay..**" and he tried to ring Karen for the 26th time that morning.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own the characters, they belong to the BBC. If I did own them, this would have happened on TV ;)**

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><p><em>Her breathing slowly began to reach its normal rate, and she attempted to lift her head, but whimpered when a pain shot down her neck and spine. A good half an hour had passed since they'd spun off the road and crashed, and Karen swore she must have passed out at least twice.<em>

"**Rob?**" she called out to him; it was barely a whisper. She could not find any strength in her body to move nor speak. But he heard her.  
>"<strong>Karen?<strong>"  
>He managed to sit back up, he hadn't been hit as hard as her. He pushed against the blood-stained air bags that surrounded him, trying to find her hand.<br>"**Karen, are you okay?**"  
>"<strong>I-<strong>" she began, but felt too weak to be able to finish her cry for help. Rob eventually found her hand and squeezed it reassuringly.  
>"<strong>We'll be alright, where are you hurt?<strong>" he asked her in a soothing tone, trying to stay calm as possible. Karen didn't answer, just continued to inhale and exhale deeply; her forehead rested against the steering wheel. Rob turned to face her, and when he saw her, burst into tears. His Karen, his sweetheart Karen, flopped against the steering wheel, blood pouring from her right ear and both nostrils, her mouth partially open allowing a single stream of blood to trickle down her chin, and drip onto an air bag below. Her cheeks were red and scratched; her white blouse turned shades of pink and red; her skin pale and body lifeless. If it weren't for the heavy rise and fall of Karen's chest, Rob could've sworn she was dead. Tears ran down both of their cheeks.  
>"<strong>Oh my God Karen I-<strong>"  
>"<strong>It's okay<strong>" she interrupted him, not moving from the limp position she was in. Rob quickly got out the car – the door had broken off when they'd crashed into the tree. He jumped over the crushed car bonnet, unaware he'd broken his arm, and fell to the snow-covered ground in extreme pain. Taking another look at Karen through the windscreen, he got himself up and opened the car door on her side.  
>He reached out his hand and placed it on top of hers, "<strong>I am so sorry<strong>" he whispered. He lifted his hand to her cheek and gently touched a cut with the back of his hand. She winced in pain. "**Sorry,**" he placed his hand back onto hers. "**Come on beautiful, let me get you out at least**"  
>Rob gently placed a hand on each of Karen's shoulders and pulled her slowly into a position in which he could pick her up and place her on the jacket he had lay on the snow. He then put her into the recovery position he had learnt in a first aid lesson back when he was just 13. Leaning down, he placed a kiss on her bruised forehead as she drifted off into another sleep.<p>

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><p>Rob had called an ambulance soon after and they had both been rushed off to the hospital. Rob escaped with minor cuts, bruises and a broken arm. Karen however, had taken a serious blow to the head, and had broken her right leg. The head injury was really serious and they kept her in intensive care, closely monitoring her heart rate and brain activity every other minute. They had allowed Rob to sit in there with her, whilst she lay perfectly still on the crisp white sheets of the hospital bed, the only movement being the gentle rise and fall of her chest. Rob sat on a red armchair placed next to the bed with a sling on his arm and a bloody bandage wrapped around his head.<br>"**She'll make it through, won't she?**"  
>A nurse gave Rob an apologetic look, and crouched in front of him.<br>"**It's 60 – 40,**" she explained, "**60 she'll survive and 40 she won't. We're doing everything we can. That's all I'm really allowed to tell you**". She again smiled apologetically and went back to the machines and technology she and another doctor were working on. He sighed, scared at the possibility of losing her. He knew it was likely she'd be fine, but his head wouldn't stop thinking 'what if she doesn't'. Rob stroked Karen's hand, and eventually fell asleep in the chair he was sat in, still holding her limp hand.

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><p>"<strong>Rob? Rob? Rob!<strong>" echoed through his head; as his eyes fluttered open the sound became clearer. "**Rob!**" a familiar voice called his name. A huge smiled plastered his face as he turned to his left to see Karen's pretty little face looking up, a radiant smile beaming up at him. "**Hiya**" she said, a laugh behind her words.  
>"<strong>Hi!<strong>" he sighed in relief, and leaned down to give her a small kiss on her lips, "**You're okay!**"  
>"<strong>Debatable,<strong>" she joked slightly, "**I'm alive, anyway. I'm on crutches for a month though, don't know how I'll manage that with my stair aerobics**" (meaning having to rush up and down stairs at Waterloo Road all day, everyday) and giggled a little, not taking her eyes off Rob for a second. He laughed.  
>"<strong>Here you are in a hospital bed, covered in blood, glass stuck in your neck and a broken leg, and you're making jokes? You're turning into me!<strong>"  
>They both laughed a little, but soon both happy faces turned into straight, serious ones. They stared into each other's eyes for what seemed like forever, until Rob said: "<strong>I love you<strong>"  
>Karen kept her eyes locked on his, and whispered, "<strong>I love you too<strong>" and reached up her hand to cup his cheek, implying for him to kiss her. And he did. Just as he was about to sit back up into his chair, Karen flung her arms around his neck, stopping him from moving any further, their noses touching.  
>"<strong>I love you more<strong>"  
>"<strong>I love you more more<strong>"  
>"<strong>I love you even more!<strong>"  
>"<strong>That's not possible, Miss Fisher<strong>" and he kissed her again, through misty eyes. They hadn't really said those words to each other before, only when they had slipped out by accident. And now, they were saying them to each other over and over again, and _he_ really meant it, every word of it.


	3. Chapter 3

_I suppose this is just a bit to fill in some time before things start getting dramatic next chapter!_  
><em>I don't know why but this story doesn't seem to be showing up if I search Karen and Rob or Every Time You Lie, does it show up for anyone else?<em>

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><p><strong>Disclaimer: <strong>_I still don't own the characters, they're still the BBC's. Though, I guess I could call Emilie my own._

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><p>"<strong>Thanks,<strong>" smiled the doctor, and took the crutches off Karen, "**stay safe!**" he called after her as she and Rob walked out the hospital doors hand in hand.  
>"<strong>It feels amazing being able to walk properly again<strong>" Karen explained to Rob, a swing in her step.  
>"<strong>You look amazing too!<strong>"

It had been just over a month since the crash, and Karen was finally allowed off her crutches. He cuts and bruises had cleared up, she was just left with a small scar in the apple of her left cheek where a piece of glass had been previously lodged. They both got in the car and Rob drove them home, singing along to a song on the radio. They had toned down the wildness of their karaoke sessions in the car after the incident, neither of them fancied being stuck in hospital for a week again. It was 6pm when they arrived back through the front door, greeted by the sound of a crying baby, a stressed mother and an even more stressed teenage boy on his Xbox, clearly not destroying as many Nazi zombies as he had intended.  
>"<strong>We're back!<strong>" Karen called up the stairs to where Jess was cradling 2-month old Emilie, trying to calm her down.  
>"<strong>Hi!<strong>" Jess shouted back, before focusing again on the crying baby in her arms.  
>Karen winced at the increasing volume of the wailing, but decided it was best to allow Jess to take care of her own baby herself. Instead, she poked her head round the living room door to find her son tapping away on a set of controls whilst talking into a headset. She decided not to say anything, as last time she'd said hello to him in this state, all she got back was a '<em>Shut up you're gonna fucking ruin everything!<em>'  
>Karen unbuttoned her coat and hung it over the end of the stairs, whilst kicking off her shoes a leaving them strewn across the floor. Rob gave her a pretend look of disapproval, raising his eyebrows at her.<br>"**What?**" she asked, "**I'll do it later!**"  
>"<strong>Mmmhmm<strong>" Rob replied, and followed Karen into the kitchen, placing his hand on the small of her back as she flicked the kettle on to boil. "**So,**" he continued, "**What do you want to do tonight?**" and winked at her suggestively. She giggled.  
>"<strong>I can't, I'm sorry. I've got loads of work to catch up on at school, so I'll probably stay there until about midnight.<strong>"  
>Rob's heart sank a little at her confession, "<strong>Do you have to?<strong>"  
>"<strong>Yes<strong>" Karen answered firmly, "**End of**. **In fact, if I want to be done by midnight I'd better be off now. **" And with that, Karen gave Rob a quick kiss on the cheek, grabbed her coat, slipped her discarded shoes back on and left the house.  
>"<strong>Rob!<strong>" came a voice from upstairs, "**can you help me with Emilie for a sec?**"

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><p>Karen didn't return home until 4am the next morning. Upon feeling Karen's cold body slide into bed next to him, Rob awoke and checked the clock.<br>"**Midnight? Karen, it's four in the morning!**" he groaned, upset by the fact she woke him up and broken her promise.  
>"<strong>I'm sorry, I lost track of time. I'm so sorry Rob<strong>" Karen murmured, alcohol on her breath.  
>"<strong>Karen? Have you been drinking?<strong>" he asked her, shocked and confused at the fact she would go to work, to do work, but drink? Karen never drank whilst doing her work, because the alcohol would just confuse her.  
>"<strong>I got a bit stressed, so I got myself one of those wine carton things from the mini Tesco round the corner from the school. You know, like a big juice carton but with wine in. Funny that isn't it? Anyway,<strong>" her words came out fairly slurred, "**I only had a little bit of it, the rest is in the bin.**" Karen snuggled up to Rob and lay her head against his bare chest, "**I love you**"  
>"<strong>I love you too, honey. Now get some sleep, I think you need it<strong>" and within a minute, she fell into a deep slumber. Rob stroked her hair, puzzled by her actions. He decided to leave it until later, and too fell asleep holding her protectively in his arms. He loved her with all his heart.

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><p>When Rob woke up later that morning, he was greeted with the sight of Karen in her underwear, standing before her wardrobe wondering what she could wear that day. He propped himself up on his elbow and smiled at the sight in front of him.<br>"**Morning beautiful**" he spoke through a yawn.  
>"<strong>Morning!<strong>" sang Karen, and she gave him a long kiss on his lips. She was in an unusually good mood, he thought – she wasn't usually a morning person.  
>"<strong>You're in a good mood!<strong>"  
>"<strong>I am?<strong>" She continued to flick through the numerous office wear in her wardrobe and settled on a navy knee-length dress that she hadn't worn before, because she thought it was a little too revealing round her cleavage. Before Rob could even reply, Karen had flounced out of the room and downstairs, getting breakfast out for everyone as per usual. Rob fell onto his back, puzzled by Karen's seemingly new characteristics – drinking whilst working, working past the time she said she would, being extremely happy in the morning, wearing clothes she wouldn't usually - potentially sexier clothes. '_Maybe it's just a phase_' he told himself, trying to put his mind at rest. But it wouldn't rest, what would bring on something like this?

Harry slumped into a chair at the kitchen table. "**Morning**" he groaned at his cheery mother.  
>"<strong>Good morning<strong>" she groaned back at him, imitating the way he'd spoken to her, "**Jam or marmalade?**"  
>"<strong>Jam<strong>" he replied. A plate of Jam toast was placed in front of him and within 30 seconds he had devoured both slices, and was out the door. Karen started to waltz around the kitchen singing Robbie Williams songs to herself. Mid-song, her phone beeped a few times, indicating she had a new message. Smiling at the name that popped up on the screen, she tapped out a reply. She bit her lip as she hit send, pleased with herself.


	4. Chapter 4

Thanks for all your lovely comments. I'm sorry I haven't updated in a bit. I'm not entirely happy with this chapter, but it'll have to do. The drama starts here!

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><p><strong>Disclaimer:<strong> The BBC still owns these characters.

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><p>"<strong>Look. I'm out of bed. Now do I get my breakfast?<strong>" Rob winked at Karen.  
>"<strong>You lazy sod,<strong>" snarled Karen, a hint of sarcasm in her voice, before playfully hitting Rob on his arm, "**texting me to bring you breakfast in bed,** **I'm not a bloody maid, and it's not bloody father's day nor your birthday!**"  
>He played offended, so she gave him a large smile and placed his bacon sandwich in front of him, giving him almost the same look she had done when giving him that mail, around a year ago; the day they made it official.<br>"**Thanks babe**" he said through a mouthful of food, giving Karen a quick kiss on the cheek, which she instantly wiped off with the back of her hand. Before Rob could even ask why, she leaned forward and said "**Greasy chops**" then skipped back upstairs. She was still in a strangely good mood, and Rob couldn't quite put his finger on a reason.

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><p>The car ride to work was quiet. They'd previously toned down their singing, but now everything had stopped all together. They'd often turn off the radio to avoid temptation to sing along, thus causing another car accident. Rob wouldn't hold Karen's hand anymore, though he would often have to restrain himself from doing so. They wouldn't even talk that often. They did as much as they could to prevent another incident like before, happening again. Karen still had her scars, both on her face and in her mind; her memories. She was emotionally scarred more than physically, falling into a coma and the fact that she may not have woken up from it, it really scared her, even though at the time she obviously didn't know anything, but just from being told afterwards had really freaked her out. Karen eventually parked in her usual space in the staff car park and got out the car, slamming the dark green door behind her. Looking over the roof of the car, she saw Rob on the other side staring right back at her, but not at her face.<br>"**I think you'll find me up here**" she giggled, crossing her arms over her chest to hide her breasts which were on full display hence the dress she had chosen to wear today. Rob smiled and shook his head.  
>"<strong>You<strong>" he laughed.  
>"<strong>Me? What about me?<strong>"  
>Rob walked round the car and slid his arm around her waist and walked her into school, much to the disgust of the many students that surrounded them who would make sickly noises whenever the couple displayed their affection.<p>

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><p>"<strong>Good morning Janeece! How are you?<strong>"  
>Janeece was taken aback by the song in Karen's voice; that and the fact she'd asked her a question out of care. She looked her up and down, before looking at her breasts. <em>Was she wearing a... a push-up bra? No way!<em> Her eyes widened a little, and then she looked her boss in the face and said "**very good, thanks Mrs Fisher**" and as Karen pushed past the secretary into her office, Janeece stayed frozen still. She wanted to know why she was in such a good mood, and why she was wearing what she was – just like every pupil and staff member in the school was also thinking.  
>"<strong>Rob! Rob Scotcher!<strong>"  
>Rob didn't need to turn round to tell who was calling for him. The tottering of heels and screeching voice were strong traits of Janeece.<br>"**Rob!**"  
>He turned on his heel to face Janeece, "<strong>Yes?<strong>"  
>"<strong>You got any idea why Mrs Fisher's in such a 'appy mood?<strong>"  
>"<strong>Um, not really, no<strong>," he replied rather bluntly, "**anything else?**"  
>"<strong>Why's she wearin' a push-up bra? Like, if you already sleepin' together I don't see why she's goin' through loads'a trouble to impress ya. You 'ad a fallout or what?<strong>"  
>Rob thought for a second. He hadn't noticed the bra before this, but when he came to think about it, it did explain the sudden 'oomph' of her breasts.<br>"**Not yet we haven't**" he sighed, and marched down the corridor towards the head teacher's office.

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><p>Rob's hand was about to fall onto the door when it opened to reveal a bright and happy Karen.<br>"**Ooh Rob! I was about to come get you. Emergency staff meeting about another student caught with drugs, staffroom now!**" and with that he was whisked in to the room just down the corridor to join about 25 other people. He took his place next to Daniel while Karen stood up at the front, ready to begin her speech.  
>"<strong>Now, as you know...<strong>" she began, but all Rob could focus on was everyone else in the room. He could sense some of the men admiring Karen's cleavage, and even a few of the women marvelling. He nudged Daniel next to him, like a telling off, and he gave a few other people hard glares. One person he particularly seemed to notice was Tom. Tom was stood at the back with his hands in his pockets, and was paying very close attention to Karen. Not like the other men, no. He was staring her right in the eye, with a small smile playing the corners of his mouth. Rob shifted his gaze over to Karen, who also seemed to be staring at Tom's eyes, smiling like an idiot whilst explaining a very serious topic. He could feel a wave of jealousy wash over his body. He didn't know what there was to be jealous about; he had much more with Karen than Tom did, plus, who said they had anything anyway? He tried to shake it off, but something just didn't feel right. Unable to bear the tension building inside of him, he stormed out the room and down the corridor to his classroom. He kicked the door open and sat at his desk, anger taking over his body. He had no idea why he felt like he did, but he couldn't help this feeling. Swinging his hand over the table, a bunch of papers fell delicately to the floor. Too delicately. Instead, he grabbed the board rubber and lobbed it towards the clock on the far wall, but he missed. His head sank into his hands but before he could even fall asleep, his class filtered into the room and he knew he had to pull himself together. For now, anyway.

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><p>The bell that signified the end of the school day rang as Rob made his way up to Karen's office. Janeece wasn't sat at her desk and nobody else was in the room. As he walked towards Karen's door, he could hear voices from inside her office, and upon realising it was Tom inside the room, Rob couldn't help but place his ear against her door. Karen fell into a fit of giggles and Tom sighed through a smile, until a long silence. Still silence. But what Rob heard next killed him. He ran along the corridor, down the stairs and along another corridor until he reached his old office. And in there, he cried. He cried like a man shouldn't cry.<br>_

"_**Last night was...**__"__**  
><strong>__"__**I know...**__"  
>And another girly set of giggles.<em>


	5. Chapter 5

**I rushed this chapter, it's quite short, and I'm not sure if it's that good or not but I hope you like it anyway. I enjoyed writing Rob's lines especially. Thank you all for reviewing and stuff, I really love reading what you have to say!  
>Constructive criticism is welcomed, advice on how to improve and all that :)<br>xoxo**

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><p><strong>Disclaimer: <strong>Still don't own Waterloo Road.

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><p>Karen eventually found Rob in his old office, curled up in a ball on the sofa. The steady rise and fall of his chest showed he was sleeping. Karen slowly walked over to him, her head tilted to one side.<br>"**Rob?**" she whispered, placing one hand on his back and rubbing it in a circular motion. Rob's eyes fluttered open and adjusted to the light, before turning to face Karen who was now perched on the arm of the sofa. Just looking at her made him angry, but he didn't want to lash out at her because he knew that if he did, she wouldn't open up to him. He pulled Karen down onto his lap and he hugged her tighter than he ever had done before, burying his head into her neck. He tried to suppress tears that were forming in his eyes as he inhaled her perfume.  
>"<strong>Promise me you'll never leave me,<strong>" he whispered, knowing that if he spoke any louder, he'd burst into tears, "**promise me you'll never leave me for someone else.**"  
>Karen's mouth parted slightly in shock as she turned to look into Rob's tear-filled eyes.<br>"**What?**"  
>"<strong>Just promise me. You said you don't break your promises, so please, just promise me!<strong>" he said, letting a couple of tears slide down his pale cheeks.  
>"<strong>Rob, what's brought all this on?<strong>" asked Karen, a hint of worry behind her voice.  
>"<strong>You can't even answer me. You can't say it, can you? You keep avoiding the question. Just fucking promise me Karen!<strong>"  
>"<strong>Rob, what's gone on?<strong>" Karen squealed, clearly beginning to cry.  
>He nudged her off his knees and sprang to his feet, making for the door, but Karen's hand grabbed his wrist. He span round to see a weak and teary Karen, staring up into his eyes. She sniffed back her tears every so often and shook her head to stop her soft blonde curls from sticking to her wet cheeks. Rob freed himself from her grip and walked over to his old desk. He grabbed a stapler and threw it at the far wall, and watched as it fell to the ground in three pieces. He turned back to face his desk and grasped the edges of it for support; he knew if he didn't, he'd collapse. He felt so weak, his tired, lifeless eyes worn out from crying. He was still shaking, shaking so much that the desk was shaking.<br>"**How long?**" he asked, trying not to shout at her. Karen opened her mouth to ask another question, but before he could, he repeated, "**How fucking long, Karen?**"  
>He turned to face her. She'd sat back down on the sofa.<br>"**How long what?**"  
>"<strong>How long have you been..."<br>**He couldn't find the strength to finish his sentence, knowing that any word like 'cheating', 'adultery', 'him' or 'sex' would kill him.  
>"<strong>What?<strong>" Karen asked for what seemed to Rob, the hundredth time in the past 10 minutes.  
>"<strong>Can you say something other than bloody 'what' like you're some dumb-ass whore that has no idea what's going on. Because you do know what's happened, because you did it. You're a-<strong>"  
>"<strong>What did you just call me?<strong>" Karen snarled, edging towards Rob. She pointed a finger into his face, "**Say that again**!"  
>"<strong>I do everything I can to make you happy, but clearly, it's not enough. Clearly, I'm not good enough. Is one boyfriend not good enough for you?<strong>" and there was a short silence. Karen stood in front of Rob with a look of confusion on her face, until her eyebrows knitted together and the corners of her mouth dropped to the floor.  
>"<strong>Excuse me?<strong>"  
>Rob went and sat on the sofa, and threw his head into his hands. Karen sat on a plastic chair on the other side of the room, closely monitoring his every movement. Rob took a couple of deep breaths, and tossed his head back, before turning to look Karen right in the eye.<br>"**I went...**" another deep breath, "**to your office...**" and another, "**earlier... and... Tom was in there. And all I heard from... your office... was... Tom saying that last night... was... great... and you said that... you knew... and then you giggled that way you do... when we're together... like, romantically**"  
>Rob looked at Karen hoping for a reasonable response, but she just sat there, staring right back at him. Suddenly, she started smiling. Smiling like a complete idiot, before falling into a fit of laughter.<br>"**What?**" Rob panicked, wondering what on earth could have caused this. This was a serious, and emotional matter, especially to him, and all she could do was laugh?  
>"<strong>Oh my God, Rob. You're so naive<strong>" she said, laughing between each word, "**oh gosh**" she said to herself, flapping her hands in front of her face to calm her down.  
>"<strong>When I was in working last night, Tom was here too, because he's my deputy head and we needed to work on some things. And we got bored so we got some wine, remember like I said? Yeah, so we had a little too much of that, and then everything became funny and we just had a laugh and stuff. It was funny! Oh God, Rob. Nothing like <em>THAT<em> happened! Oh, God, oh God, haha!**" and she started laughing again, clutching onto the sides of her chair for support. Rob simply stood up and walked over to her. She smiled up into his face, and lifted her arms to his face as to wind them round his neck. But her grabbed her wrists and held them next to his cheeks.  
>"<strong>You really think I'm going to believe some crap like that? You know what Karen, it's over.<strong>" And with that, he let go of her wrists and stormed out his office, slamming the door behind him, leaving Karen sat astonished. She couldn't move, she felt so lifeless. He'd left her five seconds ago, but she already felt empty, incomplete without him. She couldn't lift her arms, moves her legs, even breathe at a steady pace. Her heart was in her throat and her stomach was churning. What had she done? She eventually found enough strength to get up from her chair, and she ran to the door and pulled on the handle. The door swung open to reveal a corridor of students, and Rob marching through them all. "**ROB!**" she screamed as loud as she could, not caring that now all the students had slowed down and were staring at their tearful headmistress. "**ROB!**"  
>Her voice cracked halfway through that single word, because of how high-pitched and loud she was screaming it. He walked through the door at the end of the corridor, not turning round once. Karen pressed her lips together, trying to stop any more tears from falling. She gripped onto the door for support as she staggered backwards into the office, and when she got inside, slammed it. She ran her hands through her blonde hair that stuck to her face, and leaned against the door, eventually sliding down it when she could stay standing no more. She curled up into a ball and cried herself into a long sleep, hoping she'd wake up and find it was all a dream.<p> 


End file.
